European stocks linked to the nuclear industry came under pressure Monday as explosions at two Japanese nuclear power reactors led investors to assess whether nuclear programs in the region would go ahead.

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European stocks linked to the nuclear industry came under pressure Monday as explosions at two Japanese nuclear power reactors led investors to assess whether nuclear programs in the region would go ahead.

One of the hardest hit companies was French nuclear reactor maker Areva, which sank around nine percent in early Paris trading after a second explosion at a Japanese nuclear plant that was damaged by the 8.9-magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami Friday.

Utility companies that committed to large nuclear projects also suffered heavily. The world's biggest producer of nuclear power, Electricite de France (EDF) declined 3.8 percent in Paris, while in Frankfurt, shares of rivals RWE and E.On both fell 3.1 percent, MarketWatch reported.

However, fears that the fast-developing nuclear crisis in Japan could compromise the resurgence of interest in nuclear power in many countries helped drive up alternative energy stocks. Shares of SolarWorld jumped over 14 percent in Frankfurt and Vestas Wind Systems, a maker of wind turbines, rose 5.4 percent in Copenhagen, MarketWatch reported.

As the crisis continued in Japan, where tens of thousands of people were evacuated to protect them from potential radiation, other countries began readdressing the nuclear fuel debate.

White House spokesman Clark Stevens said Sunday that US President Barack Obama believed that meeting America's energy needs "means relying on a diverse set of energy sources that includes renewables like wind and solar, natural gas, clean coal and nuclear power."

"Information is still coming in about the events unfolding in Japan, but the administration is committed to learning from them and ensuring that nuclear energy is produced safely and responsibly here in the US." Stevens added.

In some of the first political reactions to Japan's reactor explosions, Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) said Sunday the US "needs to quickly put the brakes on [plant construction] until we can absorb what's happened in Japan," while Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) said the problems in Japan amounted to "a warning for us."

Australian prime minister Julia Gillard reiterated Monday the Labor Party's position that Australia did not need nuclear energy to satisfy its energy needs.

"The Labor position is entirely clear; we don't think we need nuclear energy. We don't seek the development of a nuclear industry in this country," Gillard told ABC television. "We are a country with abundant solar, wind, geothermal, tidal, you name it, we have got renewable sources of energy, so we don't think nuclear energy is right for this country."

Switzerland's Federal Office for Energy said Monday authorities had suspended ongoing plans to replace its nuclear power plants "until security standards can be carefully re-examined and, if necessary, adapted," as fears spread of a nuclear crisis in Japan.

There was a chance of one 7.0-magnitude earthquake every 100,000 years in Switzerland, Swiss news agency ATS reported, adding that all but one nuclear power plant was able to withstand earthquakes of up to that scale.

"The security and well-being of the population is the absolute priority," said Transport and Energy Minister Doris Leuthard.

The crisis also put German chancellor Angela Merkel under pressure over her decision to postpone the switch-off of all nuclear reactors by a decade, just two weeks before a key state election where nuclear power looked set to be an important election issue, AFP reported.

Head of the center-left Social Democrats (SPD), Sigmar Gabriel, said Monday, "We have to realize that the era not only of cheap oil but also of nuclear power is over."

Germany decided 10 years ago under the SPD and the Greens to switch off the last of its 17 nuclear power stations by 2020, but in 2010 Merkel's government postponed the exit until the mid-2030s.

With no permanent storage site for radioactive waste in place and fears of a Chernobyl-like meltdown occurring in Germany, recent polls indicated that a majority of voters opposed the extension.

In India, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told parliament Monday he had instructed the Department of Atomic Energy "to undertake an immediate technical review of all safety systems" of India's nuclear power plants in a bid to "ensure that they would be able to withstand large natural disasters such as tsunamis and earthquakes."

India is one of the biggest markets for nuclear technology, with plans to reach a nuclear power capacity of 63,000 megawatts by 2032 from the current level of 4,780 megawatts.